Robert Rosen

 

I've been around for a long time and I thought I'd never live to see anything as malevolent as what Donald Trump and Elon Musk are inflicting daily on America. Not even Nixon comes close. That's why I attended the February 17 Presidents Day protest against the Trump-Musk regime in New York's Washington Square Park. I was part of a vocal crowd that raised their placards high in the air to express their fury at a rogue administration attempting to destroy the foundations of democracy and replace it with an autocratic oligarchy that only a billionaire would want. 

 

I don't know if such demonstrations will do any good, though if they continue to grow in size and frequency they just might. There are positive signs: a February 22 demonstration in the park urging the corrupt and compromised mayor, Eric Adams, to resign, and a pro–transgender rights demonstration the following day.

 

I do know that these protests brought to mind the Thunderclap Newman song, from 1969, "Something in the Air," whose lyrics have taken on renewed relevance. The song, written by Speedy Keen and produced by Peter Townshend, begins:

 

Call out the instigators
Because there's something in the air
We've got to get together sooner or later
Because the revolution's here
And you know it's right

 

The third verse, however, says this:

 

Hand out the arms and ammo
We're gonna blast our way through here

 

Let's hope it doesn't get to that point. But when you threaten people's jobs, healthcare, and retirement—their very way of life, there's no telling what might happen.

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